After The Storm
by simply-aly
Summary: In the aftermath of the events of 2.12, Damon lashes out at Caroline for lack of a better target, and Tyler learns something new. (Tyler/Caroline and Damon/Caroline)


She knew this would happen. Vampires and werewolves are natural enemies; it is only natural, then, that Damon and Tyler will hate each other.

Tyler doesn't understand why he hates Damon so much at first. "It doesn't make sense," Tyler says one day when they're walking up the steps to the boarding house. "I don't feel so on edge around Stefan, and he's a vampire. And you are too, and I don't feel like that around you either," he adds.

"Maybe it's because of what happened with Mason?" she suggests, trying her best to deflect the conversation away from her—even if that means leading it into off-limits Mason territory.

Tyler flinches at the name but shakes his head. "No," he says, "it's more than that. When we're in the same room, I'm always so…angry."

Frankly, angry would not be the word Caroline would choose to describe the way Tyler acts around Damon when she's with him. Possessive would be a better choice, in her opinion. For when Damon walks in the room, Tyler emits a low growl that seems to be imperceptible to anyone but her and grabs her wrist more tightly than he seems aware of as he pushes her behind him. To her, it seems as if he's instinctually aware of the destructive shared history between her and Damon.

Yet he seems oblivious to his behavior, Caroline realizes. He seems to only pick up on his anger, not the actions his anger dictates.

"He doesn't seem to feel the same," Caroline says with a shrug as she opens the door, effectively ending the conversation.

Elena called them here to talk about the moonstone issue, but no one seems to actually be here at the moment, so they move to the living room where Caroline takes a seat on one of the couches. Tyler, Caroline notices, doesn't sit; instead deciding to stand behind her, his hands right next to her shoulders on the couch.

He whispers in her ear for a while, and she giggles and flirts back as they wait for the others then, Elena calls. She says her and Stefan, Alaric, Jeremy and Bonnie are all stuck at Duke for a while longer as they go through more boxes of Isobel's. She asks them to wait there for an hour or two and they'll be over soon. Caroline agrees instantly, and it's only when Caroline hangs up that she realizes this puts them in the house alone with Damon, who chooses that moment to come into the room.

Damon seats himself next to Caroline, a glass of bourbon in his hand, and gives her a mocking smile. "And how's life with the new pet dog, Barbie?" he asks innocently—at least, that's what she assumes he's going for. Someone should really tell him he can't pull it off.

He moves his hand to rest on her leg, and Caroline doesn't know if it's a gesture meant in jest or threat, but she tenses immediately and Tyler notices. His hand, previously on the couch, now rests on her shoulder and she—and probably Damon—hears him growl.

Damon moves his hand away in mock surprise, his eyes widening dramatically. "You've got the pup on a leash, right Care?" he comments flippantly, not doing much to hide his smirk.

Caroline rolls her eyes and turns around to face Tyler. "It's alright," she says soothingly. "I'm fine."

She holds his gaze until she feels him relax once more. "I'm sorry," he whispers, "I don't know what came over me."

"I know," Caroline says, all too aware of the double meaning.

Damon raises an eyebrow. "What? Little wolfboy can't control his temper?" he swirls his glass of alcohol as he makes a pouting face. Then, noncommittally, he continues, "Do you have to use chains on nights besides the full moons? Does he play rough with you, Caroline?" He looks deliberately at Tyler, "Because I know how much she likes that."

Tyler wasn't really around during her time with Damon when she was human, and she doesn't really talk about it much now, so he doesn't really understand his meaning. He looks to Caroline for clarification. "What does that mean, Caroline?" he asks, his hand once again clenching possessively on her shoulder.

This time, Damon notices the way she's trying to hide the pain from Tyler's grip, and Caroline sees he gets some kind of satisfaction from it. "Do you remember how we were back then—how much fun we had?" Damon continues to taunt.

Caroline feels her face beginning to pale, remembering the way he treated her. The pain from the bites, the violent way he treated her, the uncouth manner in which he spoke to her. It all comes back full force and she gasps for air. She stands up and pulls on Tyler's arm for support.

Damon smirks as says, "And you tasted so good, too…in more ways than one."

Tyler's had enough by now. He doesn't have to know what happened exactly to figure out what Damon's implying.

He growls loudly now, and Caroline sees the danger in letting this continue on any longer. She turns to Tyler and says, "We'll have Elena fill us in later—I can't stay for this."

"But we were having so much fun," Damon protests laughingly. "And I don't know if Saint Stefan mentioned this, but the dynamic between two vampires is much improved upon that of a vampire and a human."

"Are you _propositioning_ her?" Tyler shouts, pushing Caroline behind him as he stands chest to chest with Damon.

Damon just laughs. "If Caroline here could take on your uncle, you really don't stand a chance against me. I've got more than one hundred years on you, Wolfie."

"Damon," Caroline cries, trying to push her way between them. "I know you're hurting, and I know that alcohol shuts everything off, but you have to stop this. Causing more pain and misery on others will not help you grieve for Rose."

He puts his hands up saying, "I didn't start this, Barbie."

"Just leave him alone," she demands, finally pushing her way between the two of them. "Tyler hasn't done anything to you."

Damon just laughs angrily at this. "Oh, but he has," he insists, shouting at her now. "It's him and his kind who killed Rose. And you, my dear little Caroline, are a traitor for siding with him."

Caroline starts crying. "I haven't betrayed anyone," she says, "and you're just being cruel by saying so."

Damon loses it then, and Caroline, who is standing in front of him, becomes his target. He grabs her neck in a powerful grip and has her pinned against the nearest wall faster than she can comprehend. She hears Tyler shouting in the background, but at the moment, it's just her and Damon. "I brought you into this cursed life, Blondie," he threatens. "I can easily take you out of it."

Caroline stares back at him coldly, summoning all the strength she didn't have when she was human. "Just you try it," she chokes out as she gasps for air.

No one moves for a full minuet. Peripherally, Caroline sees Tyler standing behind Damon, trying to move him away from her, but Damon's stronger. Damon just continues to stare at her, and she stares back, looking dignified—if she does say so herself—even as she's struggling to breathe. Finally, he drops her to the floor, and Tyler wastes no time picking her up in his arms and getting her out of the house.

They end up at the Lockwood slave quarters, and Tyler lies down on the floor with her cradled in his arms. She's started crying again, and, although he doesn't know what's going on, he holds her more tightly than he ever has before and tells her he loves her.

Caroline calms down a little while later, and starts to explain, as best she can. "When Damon and Stefan first came to town, Elena was immediately drawn to Stefan, remember? Well, I felt jealous of her and decided to try to one-up her by getting with Stefan's older brother. I didn't know, and nobody bothered to tell me, that they were vampires, and Damon used that against me.

"He fed on me and used sex as a way to keep me coming back. And then, when he was sick of me, he discarded me like old tissue paper without much of an explanation at all. Called me stupid and shallow and useless and that was the end of it."

Tyler doesn't say anything at first, doesn't know how to respond to that. Then, "You're not stupid, Caroline—you're one of the smartest girls in our grade, and damned organized as well. You're definitely not shallow, or you wouldn't be in the middle of all of this supernatural drama. And, I know for a fact that you're not useless, because I need you more than anything.

"You make me smile, even in spite of all that's happened. You make me laugh—and yes, I'll admit, I do sometimes laugh at you, but you always get me back in the end.

"You're beautiful and sexy, and I don't care what happened in the past—with Damon or anyone else—you're mine now, and I intend to keep you."

Caroline just burrows deeper into his chest and hugs him tighter. "And I don't ever want you to let me go," she says, closing her eyes.

And on that cold dirty floor, she can't help but think this is what peace feels like.


End file.
